Where to start?

[Millie]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

Hamster balls do not count as enrichment.They really don't offer anything,and in some places are considered cruel as they inhibit senses,are forceful,provide no true exploration and enrichment(refer back to the inhibition of senses issue,as this plays into that as well but there is much more to it than just that),and can be extremely dangerous for tiny claws and toes

For food the best in the UK is Harry Hamster.It's not expensive,but the quality is wonderful and it meets the nutritional needs however you do need to offer animal protein(freeze dried meat is ideal,cooked would be fine as a treat but has far less nutritional value so is inferior to freeze dried or raw meat,or freshly killed or dried safe insects along with freshwater shrimp once again dried)regularly for the diet to be truly natural and appropriate to the species.

I would stick to a Silent Runner only,in the 12 inch size of course as that fits any Syrian.You don't need a flying saucer nor are they really that great of a wheel even as an addition,since they don't replicate the natural running pattern in any way as companies like to claim They cause side arching,are much more dangerous due to the design even though some would claim they're perfectly safe,and there are definitely much better things to use to fill up the space one would take up while offering far more enrichment!

Oh wow okay, things have definitely changed since I had my last hammy, thank you for letting me know. I will look into other ways of enrichment.

I am in the UK. Do you know where I could get Harry hamster from? I had a quick google of it and it came up with a few different ones, one from pets at home or the others were on amazon. All had different packaging!

Thank you!

[Millie]

Originally Posted by JLPrairie

Hamster balls can be really dangerous for a hamster. Hamsters seem to only run it them because they're terrified and are trying to get out.
Do playpens count as "letting a hamster loose?" Playpens are great, as long as they're large enough.

Oh no! I didn't realise, I won't be getting one then! Possibly, I think I'll have to trial a play pen! Thank you

[cypher]

If you're getting a syrian you won't be able to buy a playpen that's safe as they can easily escape for most of those sold for hams, it's better to make one, there's a great idea for a playpen here, those storage cubes may still be out of stock but there are lots of similar ones you can use on amazon.
Harry Hamster packaging changed some time ago so you may be seeing some old images online, as long as it says Harry Hamster (& it now says tiny friends farm too) then it's fine.

[Rads]

Millie,
Harry Hamster food is stocked at Pets at Home it is also stocked at the Range our local branch of the Range has quite a large pet supplies dept and I find it is way cheaper than P@H..

[Millie]

Originally Posted by cypher

If you're getting a syrian you won't be able to buy a playpen that's safe as they can easily escape for most of those sold for hams, it's better to make one, there's a great idea for a playpen here, those storage cubes may still be out of stock but there are lots of similar ones you can use on amazon.
Harry Hamster packaging changed some time ago so you may be seeing some old images online, as long as it says Harry Hamster (& it now says tiny friends farm too) then it's fine.

I see, thank you! I'll have to look into that. Thanks for that, picked some up today

[Millie]

Originally Posted by Rads

Millie,
Harry Hamster food is stocked at Pets at Home it is also stocked at the Range our local branch of the Range has quite a large pet supplies dept and I find it is way cheaper than P@H..

Thank you! I picked some up from the Range today.. then went into Pets at home to see it was on offer in there.. Doh! Oh well, good to know I can usually get it cheaper at the Range. Can you recommend any treats or anything?

[AmityvilleHams]

Stick with high quality natural treats Dog biscuits are very difficult to get in the UK in terms of high quality 100% safe ones(not anything by Pedigree or Purina,as these are not good quality and should be avoided despite their popularity once you understand the ingredients in them and why they just aren't good)however I have found that high quality biscuits do exist for example Lily's Kitchen make at least one safe biscuit I'm not sure about any potential small brands out there or just brands which in general aren't available through chain stores and popular sources though,but that is worth looking into.Just make sure they contain no corn or wheat if they'll be shared with dogs,as these are safe for hamsters but awful for dogs!

Whimzees(not Greenies as the quality for those is nowhere near as good)are an excellent chew/treat to use.Buy them in bulk if you can,since it is generally more cost effective.Plain puffed rice or wheat is another good option,as well as other plain hamster safe grains and seeds and such.Fresh or freeze dried(not dried with sulfur as this is unsafe)fruits can be good if they're high quality.Make sure nothing is ever made in or sourced from China or irradiated though,as this makes any product unsafe.

Freeze dried(not cooked,as cooked meat has poor nutritional value in comparison to freeze dried which actually keeps the same nutrients as with raw but merely removes the moisture)hamster safe meat is a great idea as well,and really should be added to the diet anyways to make for a species appropriate diet as hamsters are natural omnivores

Make sure no treats include "E&C approved antioxidants" or anything similar,as this is a loophole to include BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin(known to cause cancer especially with prolonged exposure,but regardless not a good thing to feed even rarely)without actually having to specifically state it as such.There should also be no form of unspecified biproducts,labelled as "liver","digest","derivatives","meat and bone meal"(or similar with specified meat source,as this is still unsafe regardless),biproduct meals,etc.Because it can include high quality safe biproducts(highly unlikely)or general slaughterhouse waste(basically anything including things which shouldn't be fed to any animal,including that which is sourced from animals which don't even need to be specified whether it be horse or cow or chicken,or going beyond just that which is intentionally slaughtered with roadkill or euthanized pets).There should be no artificial or processed sugars either,nor should there be any artificial dyes or flavors.

[Millie]

Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams

Stick with high quality natural treats Dog biscuits are very difficult to get in the UK in terms of high quality 100% safe ones(not anything by Pedigree or Purina,as these are not good quality and should be avoided despite their popularity once you understand the ingredients in them and why they just aren't good)however I have found that high quality biscuits do exist for example Lily's Kitchen make at least one safe biscuit I'm not sure about any potential small brands out there or just brands which in general aren't available through chain stores and popular sources though,but that is worth looking into.Just make sure they contain no corn or wheat if they'll be shared with dogs,as these are safe for hamsters but awful for dogs!

Whimzees(not Greenies as the quality for those is nowhere near as good)are an excellent chew/treat to use.Buy them in bulk if you can,since it is generally more cost effective.Plain puffed rice or wheat is another good option,as well as other plain hamster safe grains and seeds and such.Fresh or freeze dried(not dried with sulfur as this is unsafe)fruits can be good if they're high quality.Make sure nothing is ever made in or sourced from China or irradiated though,as this makes any product unsafe.

Freeze dried(not cooked,as cooked meat has poor nutritional value in comparison to freeze dried which actually keeps the same nutrients as with raw but merely removes the moisture)hamster safe meat is a great idea as well,and really should be added to the diet anyways to make for a species appropriate diet as hamsters are natural omnivores

Make sure no treats include "E&C approved antioxidants" or anything similar,as this is a loophole to include BHA/BHT/ethoxyquin(known to cause cancer especially with prolonged exposure,but regardless not a good thing to feed even rarely)without actually having to specifically state it as such.There should also be no form of unspecified biproducts,labelled as "liver","digest","derivatives","meat and bone meal"(or similar with specified meat source,as this is still unsafe regardless),biproduct meals,etc.Because it can include high quality safe biproducts(highly unlikely)or general slaughterhouse waste(basically anything including things which shouldn't be fed to any animal,including that which is sourced from animals which don't even need to be specified whether it be horse or cow or chicken,or going beyond just that which is intentionally slaughtered with roadkill or euthanized pets).There should be no artificial or processed sugars either,nor should there be any artificial dyes or flavors.

Okay! Thank you for all that, I've made a list and heading to the shops tomorrow so I'll see what I can find. Are any of the typical 'hamster treats' okay such as the harry hamster Yippees or the Johnson's hamster treats.. just want to check before I go out any buy a bunch.

Also not sure whether to get a mineral salt lick too?

Sorry for all the questions!

[Millie]

Another question - For bedding, do I need to use just Fitch on its own or a layer of newspaper or wood chips etc on the bottom first? Sorry if this is a really stupid question!
Any help is appreciated.

[Coco61]

I use fitch for the substrate all over the cage to a good depth. It will get packed down over time so then I add more. Mocho has fitch in his house ( and I see him pouching some pieces to take inside) but I also tear up plain white toilet paper into strips and leave it outside his house for him to take inside. When I see him pouching fitch, I put more toilet paper in the cage. On the rare occasions I go into his house (it has 3 rooms!) and remove as little bedding as possible, I leave more strips outside for him to do his own repair work!